QUESO! has arrived!

This time last year, I had just wrapped up a month-long tour of Texas, eating chile con queso all over my home state. It was the greatest road trip of my life. Today, I celebrate the results of that delicious research and am thrilled to announce that my latest book, QUESO! Regional Recipes for the World’s Favorite Chile Cheese Dip has at last arrived!

While I spent most of last year eating, researching, and cooking all things related to chile con queso, my obsession with the dish actually began a few years ago when I first moved to New York.

As many of you know, the classic recipe for home-style queso is to melt together a can of Rotel tomatoes with green chiles and a brick of Velveeta cheese. At that time in New York, however, the proper tomatoes were as elusive as a crisp fall day in Texas. And while you could sometimes find the proper cheese, stores only sold the tiny bricks for a crazy expensive price. I had to make do and figured out how to make queso with alternative ingredients, which lead to an all-natural chile con queso recipe. That, however, was only the beginning of my obsession.

For instance, a friend from El Paso informed me that the queso in her hometown wasn’t like the processed cheese Tex-Mex liquid gold most people associate with the name, so I flew there to investigate. Then I read in one of Matt Martinez’s cookbooks (he’s the creator of Bob Armstrong dip), that instead of using Velveeta (or a similar brick processed cheese) in his queso, his family preferred regular American cheese. (Yes, there is a difference between the two, with American cheese having less stabilizers and more dairy, which makes it an actual cheese rather than simply a “cheese food,” as brick processed cheese is labelled by the FDA.)

More questions arose. Where did chile con queso come from and how did it evolve? What are the regional variations of chile con queso? Why the heck does Arkansas lay claim to this dish? Can chile con queso be considered a mother sauce? I could go on. My curiosity fueled my quest and I spent my time reading articles; paging through old cookbooks; talking to queso cooks; and making a variety of different recipes. I ended up with a spreadsheet of 215 recipes, which when I pitched the book to my agent and publisher they requested that I narrow it down to 50—a difficult task when you’ve become a queso nerd!

In the end, however, I am over the moon with the finished book. Recipes include historical quesos such as the original Mexican incarnation of the dish and the first chile con queso recipe published in Texas; classic Tex-Mex queso recipes, such as ones inspired by Felix queso and Kerbey Lane; chile con queso as it’s found along the border, such as the white cheese and chile-rich El Paso style and an assortment of skillet queso fundidos.

The are recipes for quirky quesos, such as vegan queso, a smoked cheddar and sausage Hill Country queso, and one livened up with Indian chutney; and finally, recipes where queso makes an appearance such as enchiladas, huevos rancheros, and chicken-fried steak.

Besides all the cheesy goodness, there are also recipes for delicious queso add-ins such as salsas, fajitas, chili, pulled pork, bean dip, and more. If you’re curious, I even show you how to fry corn tortillas to make your own chips, and I cracked the code on the puffy tostada, too.

The mouth-watering photography was done by Aubrie Pick, and the packaging of the book is a charming size perfect for hostess gifts or stocking stuffers. (Speaking from experience, it also fits nicely into a purse or book bag if you wish to carry it around and show people how wonderful queso can be.)

Because I’ve become a queso nerd, I could continue but for now I will let you go so you can grab your own copy of QUESO! and start cooking. Though if you would like to discuss queso with me in person, please come see me on tour—I would love to visit with you!

As always, thank you for reading and for your encouraging words. You make this all worthwhile and I am so grateful. This project has brought me immense joy and I’m delighted to finally share that joy with you. So, grab your chips, your cheese, your chiles, and your loved ones, and enjoy the glory of queso!

Anon–Yes, I have used it before and it has a nice flavor. It's hard to get, however, unless you're in the trade, and I find that regular American cheese (vs. Velveeta), achieves that same creamy flavor, though you do need to use a bit of starch to keep the queso from breaking. An extra step, but not a difficult one!

Oh I can't wait to get s copy! We've been in Virginia now for 4 years and if we haven't learned to make a dish ourselves, we just don't eat it. There is a Chuys that opened in Richmond but it's not as great as real TexMec to us. Looking forward to your book.

I received my copy last week! It will be a great Christmas gift for my family! Thanks for letting us help you with the taste testing, it was a blast! Let me know when you're ready for the next venture! Especially if you can include Fort Worth! My door is always open and there is always food!Lisa in Fort Worth

Congrats upon the release of your fabulous recipe book..If we had not just had our paid for pristine car totaled I would run out and get it but I will wait til Hanukkah when our only comes home from NYC and she will fetch it for me as she adores Queso in any form..I know you will a bagillion copies as your a spectacular authoress and cook!

I bought this for my husband, he loves queso and his office does 'Queso Friday' where they each take turn making different Queso! Hoping he'll love this and the photography is beautiful. So many wonderful recipes, I like how it takes you on a journey of Queso through different regions. Lovellyyyyy! <3

What a neat book! I would love to get it. I made your Bob Armstrong dip a couple years ago during a pregnancy craving, and I got flack from the safeway deli person for asking for a huge hunk of american cheese, because they said it wasn't safe for them to slice it by hand LOLOL. I'm imagining the grief I will be putting them through to make these recipes!

side note as a result: any other recommendation for getting chunk american??

A37licia–I can't think of any other way to get a block of American cheese except from the deli counter. But If they insist on slicing it, while you won't be able to grate it as you would with a chunk, you can chop it (or just tear into strips), which will also work. Also Kraft Deli Deluxe is a good American cheese that comes sliced, but the slices are not individually wrapped in plastic so it's easier to use.

Lisa, I love your new book-just read it cover to cover! Enjoyed the 1939 Lubbock reference, and want to tell you about another out of the ordinary queso you should sample should you come this way. Sylvana's queso at La Diosa Winery is amazing! Here's the menu description: A blend of swiss, jack, and parmesan cheeses with artichoke hearts, onion, jalapeños, and tomato baked to a golden brown and topped with pico de gallo.

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